Israel files complaint after delegation threatened at Eurovision opening

Israel’s Kan public broadcaster has filed a complaint with Swiss police after a man was filmed threatening the Israeli delegation during the opening event of the Eurovision Song Contest on Sunday afternoon.

In a video that went viral on social media, a group of anti-Israel activists can be seen waving PLO flags and wearing keffiyehs, with one of them making a throat-slitting gesture and spitting toward the Israelis.

The incident took place during the Turquoise Carpet parade in the Swiss city of Basel. The annual event serves as the official opening ceremony that kick-starts the week of Eurovision Song Contest live shows.

Nova massacre survivor Yuval Raphael, arrived at the Opening Ceremony of Eurovision 2025.

She was met by the usual “Free Palestine” crowd, people who seem to have nothing better to do than harass a young survivor who came only to sing.

One of them made a hand gesture of… pic.twitter.com/Z1bgbz7w0t

— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) May 11, 2025

Kan said it asked the European Broadcasting Union, which organizes the annual musical extravaganza, for help in identifying the activist who made the threat.

Many PLO flags could be seen during Sunday’s parade, as demonstrators voiced opposition to Israel’s participation in the contest.

Unlike other competitors, Israeli singer Yuval Raphael was accompanied by bodyguards. The security measures highlighted the tense atmosphere surrounding the Jewish state’s participation in the international event.

Raphael is a survivor of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre at the Supernova music festival in Israel’s south. She will perform “New Day Will Rise,” an emotional anthem written by Keren Peles that speaks to resilience and hope in the aftermath of the national tragedy.

Raphael secured her Eurovision entry by winning Season 11 of the popular Israeli television competition “The Next Star.” She is set to compete in Eurovision’s second semifinal round on Thursday night.

JNS